Robert Lewis Chapman

Ladies and gentleman, Bob has left the building. The wildly larger than life journey of Robert Lewis Chapman came to a peaceful end with family by his side on December 1, just as Bob was roaring through his 96th year on the planet. Bob embodied many things to family and friends alike.

Bob, or Papa Bob to his grandchildren Nick and Sebastian, made an indelible mark on everyone he encountered thanks to his sparkling sense of humor and steel-trap mind (he seemed to have a ready, and accurate, fact handy on just about any topic, from golf to global politics) and whip-quick wit (too many one-liners to list as they would stack up higher than a phone book). He could hit a mean golf drive into his 80s although often lamented their inevitable slice into foliage. He always seemed to be tuned into countless news programs at once, while also ensuring that the latest football, baseball or golf event of the moment was either live or taped. He was an avid consumer of the latest tech gadgets long after his peers had opted out.
 
Bob was born in 1927 in Omaha, Nebraska, son of Gertrude and Isidore Chapman, followed momentarily by his twin brother Harold. Among their Cornhusker neighbors was none other than the Buffett family, later to become legendary for their son, Warren.
 
But the high plains wouldn't contain him for long. Bob wrapped up high school in Nebraska and decamped for Ann Arbor where he enrolled at the University of Michigan (Go Blue!). As World War II raged, he was drafted, winding up first at Fort Bliss in Texas and later in bombed-out Frankfurt. Bob always said that his time in the military was extremely formative, helping instill a sense of discipline and responsibility.
 
Returning from the Army, he wrapped up his studies at Michigan and then headed for Stanford Law School alongside future legal luminaries including Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, who passed on the same day; surely he is debating legal matters with her in heaven right now.
 
After law school, Bob made his way back to Omaha where he and his brothers, twin Harold and younger Punky, worked in the family business. Bob soon met and married the equally vivacious and charming Kaye Karlan of Denver. Looking to make a name for himself independent of his family, Bob and Kaye then made the prescient decision to move to San Diego, still a young city with barely a road between it and Los Angeles.

The Chapman family grew quickly with first the arrival of Cynthia, and then adding three more children, including Cathleen, Robert Jr. with Courtney as the caboose. The Chapmans proudly called Point Loma home, with Bob providing through his family law and real estate business practice. The family enjoyed tennis and sailing at Dennis Connor's San Diego Yacht Club, and many road trips around the American West.

Around the new Millennium, Bob met Myrna Grayson, a warm soul and brilliant legal mind. They became truly inseparable, traveling the nation and the world on various adventures before keeping their outings more local. When Myrna passed earlier in 2023, Bob soldiered on solo with the help of his many old and new friends who he'd meet up with at his favorite water holes including La V and The Manhattan. He seriously contemplated getting a job working at the local Apple store teaching fellow seniors about the magic of tech (the only sticker on his car was the famous Apple logo and he had Apple power chargers in every room of his house).

Bob lived independently until the end, his health remained remarkable, with no artificial parts and a valid driver's license. But recently he had developed a cough that just would not vanish, eventually leading to pneumonia and hospitalization. After five days under strict medical supervision, Bob asked to return to his beloved home on Mount La Jolla where he spent his final days looking out at the San Diego Bay.

We salute this incredible American journey, one of service, good times and a passion for life for nearly a century.